Unless you were rocketed to Earth from the dying planet Krypton, chances are you’ve had the experience of removing a Band-Aid, and you’ll be familiar with the generally accepted wisdom that it’s better to just get it over with quickly rather than drawing out the process any longer than necessary. The anticipation of pain can often be worse than the experience itself.
In a related story, it’s been two months since the release of an issue of Laurenn J. Framingham’s Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter: The Laughing Corpse: Book Two: Necromancer, which has apparently switched to a bimonthly schedule to draw out the suffering as long as possible better accommodate the rigorous demands of producing a comic where nothing ever happens. But when an issue does hit the shelves, you can rely on the ISB Research Department to step in to provide a scholarly examination of its many, many mysteries.
So please, grab your own copy and follow along!
0.0: According to the last-issue recap, the various non-events of the series thus far are “forcing Anita to go on the defensive.” If there’s a better summary of the driving action of this series than the events beyond her control leading our “heroine” to stand around waiting for further events beyond her control, then brother, I’d like to hear it.
1.1: As it turns out, the “Laughing Corpse” of the title is actually a comedy club:
Putting aside the fact that “The Laughing Corpse” would be a better name for a tavern where a hardy band of unlikely heroes are contracted to put an end to a local kobold infestation, this actually establishes a pattern, as the first series–Guilty Pleasures–was named after a vampire strip club. If the theme of naming her books after local drinking establishments holds up, I look forward to the next installment: Laurenn J. Framingham’s Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter: The TGI Friday’s Down By the Airport.
2.2: Most comics make an attempt to hook the reader right from the start by throwing some Big Action into the first few pages. LJFsABVHLCB2N, however, takes a different route, so thrill as Anita bulldozes through any obstacle in her path with the ancient art… of politeness!
In future issues, brace yourself for the chilling action of Anita drinking eight to ten glasses of water every day and waiting an hour after eating before getting into the pool!
3.1: I’ve made something of a point of the fact that nothing ever happens in this comic, but just in case you thought I was exaggerating, I’d like to point out that Anita’s spent two and a half pages waiting in line at a club and asking to speak to the manager.
Two. And a half. Pages.
4.4-4.5: All right, at this point, I can’t even keep the veneer of faux-scholarship up, because of this nonsense:
In order to characterize Anita as the tough, no-nonsense heroine that she so desperately aspires to be, this scene shows Anita talking about how if she gets tired of waiting, why, she’s just going to march right in there and give that effete vampire a piece of her mind, which of course is met with a reaction of pure awe at her toughness from some minor character. Which is fine, except that–and I refer you to the point above–she doesn’t do that. What she does is sit around for another nine fucking pages waiting patiently for James from Team Rocket to pencil her into his busy schedule.
That is bullshit.
You can’t just tell your readers that someone is a total badass without actually having them do something to back it up every now and then. Otherwise, you’re just creating the impression that your main character is an all-talk pompous windbag that caves at the first sign of any actual pressure, which is actually completely supported by the evidence we’ve been given. It’s a cheat, and unless we’re meant to equate Anita with the fat kid from elementary school who talked about how he had eighteen black belts and could totally beat up anyone but went out like a punk to a Macho Man Randy Savage
Moving on.
5.3-5.4: Ladies and gentlemen, I give you… comedy:
Admittedly, I think this guy’s actually supposed to be a lousy comedian, but I think this is a very revealing scene, as it shows that since Jean-Claude has become the Vampire Master of St. Louis, the talent coordinator at the Laughing Corpse has been replaced by someone who totally sucks at his job.
6.6: And thus, our comedian discovers the advantage of using a ventriloquist dummy rather than a zombie in his act: Neither one is going to be funny, but there’s a decent enough chance that the dummy isn’t going to try to eat your flesh.
In either case, this is the scene depicted on the cover, where Anita leaps in to save the comedian by applying a chokehold to the zombie and physically wrenching him away from the victim. In the actual story, however, it goes a bit more like this:
Yep. She talks to it. And it stops.
Also of note, the fact that Anita’s narration offers a hasty, defensive explanation for why she actually did something instead of just sitting around.
8.2-8.3: As an annotator, it’s my job to point out bits of dialogue that can reveal something about the creators. In this case…
WILLIE: I never liked zombies.
ANITA: Are you afraid of zombies?
WILLIE: No.
ANITA: You’re afraid of zombies. You’re phobic.
…we can learn that Laurenn J. Framingham owns a thesaurus. And possibly that she learned to write by reading The Super-Dictionary.
11.4: I have read every issue of the Anita Blake comics. God help me, I have read them multiple times, and written pretty extensively about each one.
I have no idea who this character is.
12.3:
You know, I think we all need an “escort to the tenderloin” every now and again. Am I right, fellas?
12.7: Oh wait, he’s that dude who works at the bar. Way to create a memorable supporting cast!
14.2: Prepare for trouble…
…and make it double.
Yes, after nine pages of sitting around his comedy club, Anita finally comes face to face with her sworn enemy, and then they start discussing art. Seriously, it’s an entire page of talking about the painting on the wall. That’s Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter, folks. Ask for it by name.
16.1: Oh my God will you look at this guy.
Jean-Claude is wearing leather pants with thigh high leather boots on over them. If you saw this guy walking down the street, you could be late for your own wedding and you would still turn around to follow this guy for blocks until you could get a good shot with your camera phone.
16.2-16.3: Racking up another mark for Anita’s rep as the hardcore “Executioner” is this scene…
…where she can’t hold a conversation with her nemesis without getting distracted by his chalk-white pecs.
17.1: Oh my God.
18.3: They’re just going to talk to each other about nothing for the rest of the issue, aren’t they?
19.4: Yyyyyyyyyup.
20.2: zzz
21.4: zzz
22.6: zzzhuh? Oh, it’s ending? No, it’s okay. I’m up. Okay, what do we have here…
22.7: You know, with the lack of action pretty much a foregone conclusion at this point, you have to think that the Anita Blake series is succeeding on its other merits, like the strong characterization, dialogue and interplay…
…which in this case appears to be lifted directly from Jimmy Olsen and Perry White, circa 1957.
Fantastic.
You know, in an upcoming book of mine, a kobold infestation actually makes up a subplot…
I am not joking.
As much as the schadenfreude is amusing I almost feel like we should hold an intervention to get you to stop.
In the last image, there’s a red glowy thing on Anita’s cheek. Is that blushing at Pec-Man’s pecs, blushing because she’s ashamed of her own comic, or did Pec-Man jab her in the face while you were asleep? Tell me, don’t make me have to read it myself. Please…
I don’t understand why this book series is popular.
I don’t understand why Twilight is popular.
What the hell is wrong with America?
I’ll have to try and remember to check out Rachel’s books now. Also, its been a few years, but I do remember there being more action in the series. I mean I dropped the damn series when a whole book passed without Anita shooting anyone…
Why the hell is Anita and Pasty White Guy’s hair EXACTLY THE SAME?!
Couple things that are going to eat at my soul unless I mention them:
1) Creators of Anita Blake, I, personally, feel that eight (8) months is a long time to ask people to wait to learn that The Laughing Corpse is a club.
2) For Anita Blake, that is an above average cover. With some minor tweaks to make it even more explicit that Anita is tackling a rampaging zombie on the stage at a comedy club, it might even have been good. My suggestion: rubber chickens.
3) If the tenderloin guy is Dead Dave, then I actually did get that, but only because he is one of two (2) black characters in the entire run of the title, going by your annotations. The other being Det. Perry, whom I have been waiting to see horribly murdered, but now I think Framingham just had appear in order to foreshadow Anita’s use of politeness later in the series. What a craftswoman!
3) The most tension I felt in this comic was the wait for Chris to say “Prepare for trouble…” and by God, you drew it out like a true showman. Also, I should be ready for the fact that Cap’n Emo dresses like that all the time, but I’m not. I’m just…not.
4) Chris, I’m sorry to hear that someone gave you a Macho Man Elbow Drop in grade school. But you learned from it and came away a better person. Kudos!
I’m sorry, I forgot two more…
5) Mojo, there is nothing wrong with America that can’t be cured by sexier vampires!
6) I would honestly and sincerely pay, like, $10 for an Anita Blake one-shot written by Garth Ennis in which he unleashes Cassidy on this whole miserable rag-tag.
The first guy just worked at Dead Dave’s bar; this guy is someone else, a co-worker of Anita’s who also raises zombies.
….Is Anita’s hair getting bigger? Or rather, it seems to be getting less wide, but kind of taller and denser. I wonder if eventually it’ll evolve into a big, poofy beehive like Marie Antoinette?
Marie Antoinette, Vampire Hunter? Now there’s a book that’d be way more awesome than this one!
“LET THEM EAT BULLETS!” chk-chk-BOOM!
(umm, because Marie Antoinette totally has anti-Vampire bullets in a shotgun).
Looking back through, the red cheek-thing is there for the whole comic – so it isn’t a blush. When did someone smack Anita upside the head, and does that mean that something actually happened?
I think Laurenn needs a better thesaurus – “phobic” refers to an irrational fear, and being afraid of zombies in a world where they exist and want to eat you is totally rational.
Unless, wait – she’s not trying to use “phobic” to parallel “homophobic” here, is she? Is she trying to make a socially progressive point by equating gay people with zombies?
Does anyone else think that this series succeeds solely on the fact that “Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter” is a cool title for a series?
Dear sir, I feel you should be compensated in alcohol for all your trouble of actually reading this terrible stuff for our enjoyment (as it is the custom around here and really Very Cultural).
Please advise on where it should be sent.
In all seriousness, it saddens me that a talent like Ron Lim’s is wasted on illustrating such an inferior text.
‘Cos that’s what Anita Blake: The Comic is — not a comic-book, but a magazine containing text with illustrations.
I mean, Jesus Christ in a handbasket. If there is a market for this kind of story, why not make a better comic?
Anyone prepared to take the challenge and compete with the Anita Blake publishing juggernaut?
It’s so easy: MAKE A BETTER ASS-KICKING FEMALE VAMPIRE HUNTER COMIC THAN ANITA BLAKE. (The very textbook definition of “easy”.)
…I’m having a hard time getting the image of Jimmy Olson calling Perry White ‘ma petite’ out of my head.
“It’s so easy: MAKE A BETTER ASS-KICKING FEMALE VAMPIRE HUNTER COMIC THAN ANITA BLAKE. (The very textbook definition of “easyâ€.)”
They could use Elsa Bloodstone. But she’s a monster hunter, and not just restricted to vampires, isn’t she? Hmm. Bonus points if Machine Man and Captain &#%$ make guest appearances.
Please please please dress up as Jean-Claude for Heroes Con.
I understand there’s been a movie option.
For the role of Jean-Claude, or perhaps Ineeda Break herself, might I suggest Richard Marx, or at least his mullet?
http://www.music-sniper.com/ftp.asp?img=conp253.jpg
After every shot of Anita and her oddly-rougued cheek, I scrolled down to Batman saying “Sorry lady, I’m not in the mood for this.” It improved the story wonderfully.
Bats wouldn’t up and slap a lady just because she’s in a soul-crushingly boring comic. Then again, that looks like Aparo’s Batman. Anita probably got that bruise on her face just from him SAYING that.
I really wish these weren’t bi-monthly. I need this more often than that. :)
-kat
4) Chris, I’m sorry to hear that someone gave you a Macho Man Elbow Drop in grade school. But you learned from it and came away a better person. Kudos!
THAT WAS SOMEONE ELSE YOU CRUMB-BUM!
Jean-Claude is wearing leather pants with thigh high leather boots on over them.
It’s even worse in the book, where Hamilton’ll interrupt a conversation to describe what froo-froo nonsense Jean-Claude is wearing.
And it’s even WORSE in Merry Gentry, where the men have colored skin (as in green and purple) and colored hair and have to get ridiculous clothes OF THE SAME COLOR AS THE REST OF THEIR BODY.
Chris said: In future issues, brace yourself for the chilling action of Anita drinking eight to ten glasses of water every day and waiting an hour after eating before getting into the pool!
and: What she does is sit around for another nine fucking pages waiting patiently for James from Team Rocket to pencil her into his busy schedule.
Funniest bloody review I’ve read in a long, long time mate. Cheers.
I want to be the first to buy the Anita Blake non-action figure. It will be her sitting in a Barc-o-lounger, snoozing away.
I don’t think I’ve seen such depths of nothing happening since I caught that MST3K episode featuring “The Killer Shrews,” a movie where no one did much of ANYTHING besides drink martinis, talk about dixieland jazz, and occasionally wander out and get eaten by a poodle clumsily made up to look like a rodent.
(Why is it that the description of this awful film STILL sounds better than an issue of Anita Blake?)
Ehh, I enjoyed the first few reviews of these, but it basically breaks down to “This is a bad comic adaptation of a novel.” I get it. Feel free to move on to dissecting other bad comics, like more Tarot. ;)
The books themselves are pretty entertaining. At least the first 6 or so, before it becomes a Mary Sue porn-fest where Anita sleeps with anything male.
This makes me wonder: If they handle the GOOD Anita Blake novels like this, and make them into boring crap, what happens when they begin to adapt the later novels? Where it turns to porn. Serious, Tarot-like porn. Page after page of Anita lusting after (and getting) every male character who walks thru the book. I have to say, I enjoy these reviews a heckuva lot more than the newer Blake novels. I like some plotline/adventure in my books.
I disagree Greg. I think it boils down to “This is a half-hearted comic adaptation of a bad novel.” Feel free to move on to writing your own blog if you’re unhappy with the free content Chris is providing.
Grab my own copy and follow along? Are you MAD? You’re reading this so that I don’t have to.
I agree that Chris should do an Annotated Tarot. Or an Annotated Ultimatum but maybe that’s taking it too far
Anyway, his attempts to draw humor out of this snoozefest are inspiring to watch. Keep up the good work, Chris
You’re welcome to disagree, Tim. I do enjoy 95% of the material Chris gives us, which is why I’ve been slightly disappointed when I’ve seen the last few Anita Blake reviews. I love the Tarot reviews, the Batman images, and pretty much anything about Herbie. Just, for me, the Anita Blake stuff is played out. It’s a bad, boring adaptation of a novel. (You may think it is a bad novel, and that’s where I disagree with you, Tim.)
That’s why I tend to avoid comic adaptations of novels and movies. Converting from one medium to another takes skill and effort. Adaptations are harder than just slapping the novel text onto the page and adding some artwork, which seems to be the way they’re handling this book.
It’s also why I dislike a lot of movie versions of comics, like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. It was a bad adaptation of good source material.
(So, Chris, I don’t mean to come onto your blog and tell you what to do or not do. I just wanted to give a little feedback, cuz I figure that’s what this comment section is for. And your review *is* more interesting than reading the comic itself, so that’s something… My apologies if I offended.)
Chris, what the hell are you complaining about? Look at what you get in this issue!
LINE-STANDING ACTION!
CHILD-LIKE EFFORTS AT POLITENESS!
STOPPING A ZOMBIE RAMPAGE BY SAYING “STOP!”
THIGH-BOOTS!
AND FRENCH! FRENCH!! FRENCH!!!!
Jesus, Sims. What the hell more do you want in a comic?
Face facts, true believers: This one has it all!
Maybe the pacing is so slow because the writers and artists are trying (desperately) to stall for the dreadful moment when they have to adapt the… more “recent” books in the series.
*COUGH*The “Ardeur”*COUGH*
Kate: Personally, I’d go with “Let them eat lead!”
That said, your idea is a winner. I have no interest in vampires, and little interest in French historical figures, but I would definitely read Marie Antoinette: Vampire Hunter.
“I think Laurenn needs a better thesaurus – “phobic†refers to an irrational fear, and being afraid of zombies in a world where they exist and want to eat you is totally rational.”
It’s worth pointing out that the character in question is a fucking vampire, and even a chumpstain vampire like him can BENCHPRESS A FUCKING BUICK. He’s got nothing to fear from zombies.
Oh your bougeous expectation of plot and theme and character development and well, anything happening at all, belies your innate unsophisticatian and lack appreciation of the anti-comic. It breaks the structure of the the dynamic by deliberately subverting your expectations of the text. It’s brilliant I say.
Kate, for your earlier suggestion of Marie Antoinette: Vampire Hunter, why not just go with the line, “Let them eat STAKE!”?
Next time I DM I’m naming the tavern “The Laughing Corpse.” I’ll name the bartender after you, Chris.
Yep, almost all the titles of her books (and the comics I guess) are named after a place Anita visits for either two sentences or ten chapters, depends.
As KD says, almost all the early books are named for places that come up in the story. Later books start drifting from this conceit, including one book where the titular place was in the first draft, but then got cut and they KEPT THE TITLE, WHICH NOW KINDA MAKES NO SENSE. More brainpower must have been needed for the boring-ass porn and long descriptions of floor-length man-hair. (Seriously, you’re going to find that Ms. Framingham has a really, really big fetish for guys with long hair.)
I can’t believe I’m doing this, but I’ll kinda defend one thing: the thigh-high boots. They were what were in style when Jean-Claude was alive, so it makes sense they’re still what he sort of prefers. Kinda. I need to go lay down now…
So, is this what the kids refer to as Yaoi? Because it certainly seems fruity enough.
Face facts, true believers: This one has it all!
This is why I labor in your shadow, Harvey.
I can’t believe I’m doing this, but I’ll kinda defend one thing: the thigh-high boots. They were what were in style when Jean-Claude was alive, so it makes sense they’re still what he sort of prefers. Kinda. I need to go lay down now…
Yeah, okay, but Thigh-High Boots – worn over leather pants? Nuh uh.
Between Anita Blake and Tarot, Freddy Kruger would be scared of your nightmares!
i now totally want to read “Marie Antoinette: Vampire Hunter”
I love your reviews Chris.
Having read the books, I just wanted to say the African-American guy she met at the club wasn’t a vampire. He’s just a human friend of Anita’s that she asked because he looks big and intimidating who doesn’t make another appearance in the other 15 books. “The Tenderloin” is the bad part of town in this book.
i now totally want to read “Marie Antoinette: Vampire Hunter”
I smell an Action Age title!
Same here! I’d shell out 4 bucks for that book.
Also: Theodore Roosevelt and Elsa Bloodstone in a comic book.
I’ve read a couple of the books, which these seem to be drawn from. The books are about 10% action, 30% sex and 60% talk, talk, talk about why we’re disfunctional.
But seriously, the sex gets to some pretty heavy duty stuff with Anita in the middle of group action and requiring it several times a day. She learns to mouth some really bi- well never mind. But if they put that in the comic, they make draw some attention.
Please never stop reviewing these, no matter how hard it is. Having read the books and followed them too far into the abyss, this is necessary catharsis.
If you wanted to be accurate, it would be Laurenn J. Framingham’s Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter: TGI Friday’s: Location: Airport
(Wolverine does not appear to order fried green beans)
You weren’t going to stop on my account, but I definitely appreciate these annotations, mostly because they’re fucking hilarious. It isn’t taking from or adding to my enjoyment of the comics or the books, because I don’t ever intend to get closer to them than I am right now. Like Tarot, this is another bullet you’re taking for us all, and I salute you for it.
I’d totally go with “Marie Antoinette: Vampire Hunter”.
That Robespierre dude, so eager to behead the aristocracy, and always fussing over his clothing? He’s got to be a vampire.
Please tell me you just borrow these from the store and are not actually buying them.
I see I can no longer watch Conan O’Brien on Hulu without having to cope with Anita Blake.
You win this round, Framinghamm.
“Let them eat STAKE!”
F’ing brilliant, bg! If you make an Action Age out of that one, Chris, I promise to read it if you make that the tagline. It’s 100% perfect!
-Citizen Scribbler
Your pain,
I shouldn’t be laughing at your pain. And yet I feel so redeemed. It’s like ‘Chris is bleeding red from the nose and mouth. He knows. He understands!’
Though I do wonder now, if when I first read them, part of the tension was in knowing time was ticking but she had to play polite games with the vampires or risk roadblocks when she needed information and possibly backup/permission (depending on what racket she was playing).
Did I imagine that tension to make the books better? Or are the comics just that crappy in giving any sense of urgency and compromise?
I’ve read a couple of the books, which these seem to be drawn from. The books are about 10% action, 30% sex and 60% talk, talk, talk about why we’re disfunctional.
Yeah, that holds for the first few books, after which it goes to 5% action, 80% sex, and 15% talk.
I picked up the latest one in Borders the other day just out of curiosity and made it three pages before we were into the first sex scene. (note: by picked up I mean off the shelf. It did NOT come home with me.)
In defense of the series, the first couple books weren’t too bad. After that, though…yikes.
Okay, let’s break this thing down. What possible buyer demographics could an Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter comic have?
1) Fans of the novels. But these fans tend to be 18 to 40 year old women. Not exactly a well-established comic-book buying crowd. Hell, I’m IN that demographic, and I haven’t bought a comic since Preacher ended.
2) People unaware of the novels, who see the covers and think, “Oh awesome, a female vampire hunter! It’ll be like Buffy!” only to read one issue and never purchase another. Taking into account there may in fact be a steady stream of Buffy-hungry suckers who purchase a single copy on a lark, this is likely the largest single market for this title.
3) Chris.
Heck, even that goofy, metrosexual Simon Bellmont from Captian N the Game Master is more of a vampire hunter than Anita.
“In defense of the series, the first couple books weren’t too bad. After that, though…yikes.”
In detraction of the series, there’s a graphic depiction of a lycanthrope snuff porn film by BOOK FOUR.
In defense(?)/explanation of the lycanthrope snuff porn as utilized in book four – it is presented as a bad, bad, wrong, horrible thing. And the issues of lack of consent, coercion, rape, sexuality used as a manipulative power and other sub issues, were also presented as bad things; incredibly bad things.
In the later books the Anita of that later time might only object to actual death, possibly raise an objection to the more bloody pre-death activities. A culture of fear and punishment if one doesn’t do the sexy things ones leader commands is now her current status quo.
How many former fans would like to see a book come up that explains that Anita’s been possessed by Raina for the last few months (yeah, time flows weirdly in that universe. In less than 18 months the character goes from ‘Intimidation & coercion is bad’ to ‘If you don’t have sex with me, you, your wife, and your brother will all be killed to make way for someone who will’.)
If Chris makes it that far, I’d continue to read the Annotated Adventures – just to see him pick up on the hypocrisy.
Hi, just a quick little note.
1. Chris, I adore you. You deserve an award for putting up with this comic.
2. The people who did the comic messed up. The tall, beefy black guy that Anita meets up with wasn’t a tall beefy black guy in the books. It’s supposed to be Manny, her Hispanic mentor.
I’m sure they messed up on other things, but since I don’t buy the comics, I can’t say for sure.
Keep up the good work, Chris!
Twenty years ago and with a good chest-waxing, Paul Stanley could have played Jean-Claude in a movie adaptation. And Cher could’ve been Anita. Or vice versa with some clever costuming.
And I’ve wondered what Ms. Framingham thinks of the gravy train she’s missing by not giving her vampires teen angst and making them sparkle in the daylight? I’m sure LJF is beneath Stephenie Meyer now, but imagine what a dynamic vampiric stinkfest they could have created together!
Twenty years ago and with a good chest-waxing, Paul Stanley could have played Jean-Claude in a movie adaptation.
“Good question, ma petite. What do you compute, Space Ace?”
—Anita Blake Meets the Phantom of the Park
Paul Stanley as Jean-Claude is equally hilarious & grotesque to me!
Chris, don’t EVER stop doing these reviews. Promise. Swear.
Um….read the last Anita Blake book. No sex (at all) until well after pg. 300. Can’t say there was all that much action either, seemed to be back to original plan of yap yap yap, fight, yap yap yap, orgy, yap yap yap. Over.
Paul Stanley is a vampire. Um. What role would Gene Simmons play I wonder?
And don’t ever stop these reviews, they are such fun.
I honestly can’t believe how many of the commenters here have read multiple books in the Anita Blake series.
Wow…
The first several books manage to be the kind of pulpy violent fun that would attract a similar demographic to comic books so it kind of makes sense.
Of course it doesn’t seem to be transitioning to a comic for shit and there are a notable lack of people here who’ve commented who seem to have read much past book 9 if they even made it that far.
Don’t think the romance novel crowd who make up the majority of the fans of the later half are likely to show up here though so take solace in that.
I love the Anita Blake Comic Books as much as the Novels, and I can’t wait for the movie.
:)
Anita Blake is awesome.
I’ve read a good 7 or 8 of these books… And now when I hear either the author’s name or Anita’s name, I break down into an uncontrollable fit of Tourette’s…
I wanted to get these comics (they look good when you’re drunk and have forgotten why you stopped reading the series in the first place), but luckilly I stumbled upon your site and read all of your Anita annotations.
I stopped reading the series because she went from a kick-ass lead character into a slutty wimpy female. Apparently she’s been less than that through majority of the comics…
…That being said, I’m still a fan of Jean-Claude. If only for the scene (in the books) where she tries to sneak a peek at Jean-Claude sleeping and finds Jason in bed with him naked. ^^ <3
Amamelina, no, they didn’t. She called Charles, the big scary-looking wuss, not Manny the short badass. :-)
This comic is very badly adapted. The problem is that the comics are padded with asides that didn’t slow the novel down, but should have been cut for the comic. The car ride to the Tenderloin, for example, was a page and a half in the novel but in the comic it was nine pages. No.
Why is it that the only character who looks like a person is Willie McCoy? If the art were a little better, Jean-Claude might actually be believable as an incubus.
And why is it Jean-Claude’s skin is colored in 14.2 (pale, but not ridiculously so), but by 16.1 is as white as his shirt? Sloppy.